The Briton posted a series of messages on social networking site the other day, calling the title fight between Jones and Miocic pointless, and challenged the latter to not wait for the current champion to recover.
“Only four recognizable opponents and already the king of England,” the American wrote on social media, referring to the Brit. “Legendary stories will be told about you and your infamous challenges.”
“It doesn’t really work like that. I became champion when I was 23 – you can’t show up at 30 and pretend like you’ve been following me all my life. I have no idea who makes up 90% of his record, and I’ve shined in UFC tournaments my whole career. We live in a wild world where people try to replace you quickly, throw you out, discredit your work”
A few hours earlier, Jon Jones, who pulled out of his November fight against Stipe Miocic because of a torn pectoral muscle, announced that he had undergone another surgery, this time on his elbow, to rid himself once and for all of the bone spurs that had been plaguing him.
According to the UFC’s plan, Jones will not be stripped of his title and will fight Miocic after he recovers, while Aspinall will step in to defend his interim belt against one of the division’s top fighters.